God Sees Me

 

Have you ever had the feeling that you are being watched, perhaps in a store while shopping or someplace in a crowd? It is a strange feeling, is it not? When I was a boy growing up, I spent as much of my time as possible in the woods behind our house. I had different trails to walk and different spots of interest that I visited over and over again across the years. I was comfortable and at home there, whether by myself or with a friend.

But I remember once when things were different. It was after school and I had headed to the woods for a while until my daddy came home from work and my family sat down together for supper. I followed the trail for a bit, enjoying the different birds and keeping an eye out for any changes in my little kingdom. But something seemed a little off. I had the feeling someone else was out there. I could not see anyone. I could not hear anyone. But I felt someone was watching me. I began to be afraid, and soon I was racing as fast as I could through the woods back to the safety of my home.

The scriptures speak in many ways of God watching us. "I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go”. “I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” “The eyes of the Lord are everywhere”. “The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” We can respond to this idea in two ways. We can feel that this is an oppressive and frightening thing, like my imagined stalker in the woods that day long ago. We can feel God is watching like “Big Brother”, to catch us making a mistake so that we might be punished.

Or, we can feel that this is a loving act by a loving God, watching with the desire for our happiness and joy. We can feel that God watching us means God is with us, always and everywhere. We can find in this thought comfort and courage and strength. And, in the hardest of times, we can know that we are never alone.

I am certain that I was not being watched by a stranger that day in the woods. But I am just as certain that God sees me always and everywhere. And I believe that is a good thing.

Peace.